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Seasonal Stakeout

by Michelle Buckstrup

Eblacker & Stone is Chuck Eblacker, working with friction and gravity to create dry stone walls that can last 100 years with minimal

need of repair. Eblacker’s days are spent creating one-of-a-kind dry stone walls, arches, pillars, and thought-provoking installations, using an old-world approach in a fast-paced world.

It was 2002 when Eblacker decided to follow his passion for stone and work alone. At the end of his first year, he had a lot of questions. Was he doing it right, building with the integrity he

sought? Could he make a living at doing his craft alone? Eblacker’s former colleagues were often skeptical. They insisted he needed a crew and a certain level of output and convention.

Eblacker had read In the Company of Stone by internationally renowned dry stone waller and artist Dan Snow, who primarily works alone. He got Snow’s number from 411 and made a call that proved to be pivotal. “It’d be like a golfer calling Tiger Woods,” Eblacker says, “or a gardener calling up Tasha Tudor.”

Chuck Eblacker’s ongoing “Thesis in Stone”

ABOVE: A retaining wall that morphs into a circular enclave with a “moongate” entrance

Chuck Eblacker: “Any success I have had in creating interesting dry stone walls and other structures is due largely to the fact that I have clients who are creative and willing to take risks. The clients who hired me to build this retaining wall that morphs into a circular enclave with a “moongate” entrance are no exception.

I find that the best installations start with a concept and evolve from there. For these clients, I was asked to come up with an idea for a retaining wall near a stately copper beech tree. I use moldable clay models to illustrate my ideas for projects. Noting the creative spirit in my clients, I devised a model for a structure that not only retains the hill but also adds a wall circling out and back around to create an enclosed room under the branches of the tree. Originally, I suggested an arched doorway to enter the room. The clients took the model, kept it near the space, and sat with the ideas for a few days. As we exchanged ideas and visions, a highly creative project came into being.

The moongate project tested all my skills as a dry stone waller. A stretch of retaining wall turns into a free-standing stone fence as it bends around an 11-foot-diameter walled room. The room is nestled into a hill, creating a very intimate setting; a seat built against an existing slab of stone invites one to sit and soak in nature. Little additions were made along the way, including a series of arched nooks built into the walls to hold candles and a set of step stiles to provide a secondary exit from the room. (Stiles, popular in areas of Europe, are large slabs of stone that are built into a wall and protrude out, allowing a person to climb up and over a high wall. The mass of the wall and tight construction hold the weight of the person who climbs them.)

Finally, the moongate entrance is a 60-inch-diameter opening, further fostering a feeling of intimacy. A form was built to support the stone until the arched opening was closed off with the keystone. The form was then loosened and dropped down to be released. All of the arch stones point to the center, or radius, of the circle. Their weight and force pushing on each hold the arch up. Again, no mortar is needed.

I had built many dry stone arches, but never a moongate. During a nice conversation with the client one day, he mentioned that when we get that little nervous, anxious feeling inside, something special is happening to us. We are growing. Until I pulled that wooden form out from under that moongate and let the arch fall into place, I had that feeling. Now I know that when I’m working on a dry stone installation and that feeling comes over me, I am challenging myself and in the middle of an opportunity to grow as a craftsman.”

Moongate

Snow proved to be kind and accessible and invited Eblacker to a gathering of dry stone wallers at his home in Dummerston, Vermont, just two weeks from the time of the call. “I met men from Scotland, Switzerland, Tibet—this incredible pool of talent,” Eblacker says. “I was star struck and wanted to ask all these questions, but I didn’t want to be a pain.”

Snow suggested that Eblacker begin taking the Master Craftsman certifications of the Dry Stone Walling Assocation (DSWA) of Great Britain, with

workshops and examiners in the States. Of the four levels, Eblacker has reached level three. “It doesn’t mean a statement of being better than this person or that person,” he says. “For me, it’s more my own journey of learning and challenging myself to grow—my thesis in stone, so to speak.”

Dan Snow has observed many candidates take their day-long practical test for the DSWA Master Craftsman certifications. Most finish the work within the seven-hour time frame, with varying degrees of craftsmanship.

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Chuck Eblacker: “Besides building with stone, I enjoy looking for and discovering new sources of stone. While I mostly use a New York fieldstone that comes from about an hour south of rochester, I also try and find local stone that may have come off old roads, buildings, or farms nearby. The stone I used for these projects had been discarded at a local sand quarry. Too large to grind into gravel, and some too big for a man to lift, this round colorful stone was left in a large pile. I asked the owner if I could buy all of it, all 100 tons, thinking I could fashion it into a good solid retaining wall.

The wall to be built was 80 feet long and 6 feet high at its peak, and a wide set of steps was needed to make it easy to get to the side yard. The large cobbles proved to be a good match for the project. Though round shaped, a majority was also long and heavy—desirable for a large retaining wall.

The retaining wall is built double thick, like a freestanding wall. For every foot in height, the wall tapers about two inches. This is called batter or camber. The important principle in this construction is to lay the stone length-in, well into the structure. Laying stone single stack with gravel behind is sure to fail. While the latter may make for quick

work and quick money, the homeowner always ends up on the losing end. Not always popular in today’s faced paced world, I pride myself on taking my time, building to high standards to ensure a lasting wall.

I decided to top the wall using vertical coping. Widely used in Europe for its strength, stones are placed on edge like books and fit tightly on the top of the wall. Wedges hammered in tighten the copes like the last book on a shelf.

The wide stile steps create an invitation to explore what lies beyond. They are built with large slabs of bluestone, overlapped 6 inches for friction and secured by the weight of the wall on either side.

I was asked to return to the same house and build an entry using the same material. just as I was prepping the area, the right stone for the job appeared. A contractor was selling an old Medina sandstone walkway. These heaven-sent large slabs allowed me to use a thick heavy material to construct the front steps. This was crucial to the integrity if the construction, because the interlocking and overlapping of these large slabs of stone made for an attractive entry that will last.

The slanted-side stone wall anchors and ties the whole thing together. Using the large cobbles for the wall visually tied this project together with the large wall built earlier. To add a bit of interest, I inlayed small 2- to 4-inch river cobbles into a vein in the walk and on the landing. This river of small stone also reappears within a walkway in the other entrance. I am really pleased with how this wall and front steps turned out. It was especially satisfying to complete since the stone was often difficult to build with and challenged me to think creatively.”

Chuck Eblacker: “Stone cairns have been used for centuries to mark mountain passes, hilltops, and routes through rough terrain. They are also used to mark significant sites such as burial and battle grounds and memorials. Cairns come in a variety of shapes, from a simple pile of stone to formal decorative conical pillars and even spheres. In modern times, most cairns are erected for the aesthetic value they bring to gardens, landscapes, and public places. They have recently gained some popularity through environmental artist Andy goldsworthy’s construction of the pine cone cairns.

I built the cairn shown for two reasons—its aesthetic value and the fact that to sell one I had to build one first. I had been walling for a few years and was yearning to explore other possibilities of dry stone construction. Building a cairn was on my wish list of things to build. My opportunity had arrived when friends commissioned me to build one; they had the perfect spot for it at the edge of the tree line in their backyard.

The cairn is 7 feet in height and almost 3 feet across at its widest point. To keep the cost down, I used a variety of recycled material left over from various projects. The cairn is built on an 18-inch footing of clean crushed stone. Dry stone structure built with care will not be affected by our climate’s freeze-thaw cycle. Each stone is carefully chosen and laid, crossing the joint of the two stones beneath it. The voids are then hand packed with ‘hearting,’ wherein the small and large chips from the building stone fill the voids. This assures that the wall or structure is woven together with consistent material to promote friction, yet it allows water to enter and drain freely. gravel and other aggregates should never be used in the middle of a dry stone structure because they will destabilize the structure when the constant forces of gravity cause shifting.

Unfortunately, my friends sold their house and did not take the 3-ton cairn with them. I have recently revisited the site, where the cairn stands unmoved and quiet under the trees. Though I have not built a cairn since, I still have the experience with me and the pleasure of it in my portfolio.”

Cairn

Stone wall

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Chuck Eblacker’s mentor, Dan Snow, has authored two books about the craft of dry stone walling: In the Company of Stone and Listening to Stone, with stunning photography by peter Mauss. Eblacker says, “These books embody the spirit and soul of dry stone walling. ‘In the Company of Stone’ encouraged me keep dry stone walling and inspired me to explore the boundaries of the craft. ‘Listening to Stone’ is an awe-inspiring account of some of Dan’s most masterful creations and it takes the reader through his experiences working with stone. I highly recommend these books to anyone who works with stone, wants to work with stone or simply has the spirit to create.”

Snow says, “Chuck has not always completed his [test] stint in time. He’s preferred to leave his stint incomplete rather than lower his production quality to gain speed. If there’s ever a choice to be made between quality of craft or speed of construction, he always comes down on the side of quality. He thinks out the process of creation as far ahead of time as he can, asking himself the pertinent questions, or looking to outside sources for help. His questions to me have helped me become a better teacher.” Snow and Eblacker now teach dry stone walling workshops together.

Eblacker, who works out of Perinton, New York near Rochester, likes to work with clients who are open-minded and willing to try something new and different. He counts among his favorite clients Victor and Susan Regenbogen of Pittsford, for whom he created a multi-level unconventional patio space. Victor had done sections of dry stone wall before Eblacker arrived on the scene. He says, “Once Chuck started, we didn’t want him to stop, because the junction between my work and his spectacular work was so obvious. Now we’d like him to come back and do some work on another part of the property. His work is meticulous and very different from the generic stonework most landscapers do. He has a great creative sense and is just a really good guy.”

Allyson Pilcher of Honeoye Falls echoes the fandom; Eblacker did a stone wall, fire pit, and built-in grill for their new patio. She and her husband Web had been skeptical about dry stone walling until they learned about how durable it is when built properly. “Chuck is an artist,” she says. “He gave us powerfully built artwork that we live in that is earthy and is going to be here long after we’re all gone.”

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